Team BMC Racing Releases 2011 Vuelta a Espana Roster

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Team BMC Racing Releases 2011 Vuelta a Espana Roster

Contrary to its roster for this year's Tour de France, Team BMC Racing's roster for its first Vuelta a España is geared toward looking for opportunities in breakaways and stage wins.

Contrary to its roster for this year's Tour de France, Team BMC Racing's roster for its first Vuelta a España is geared toward looking for opportunities in breakaways and stage wins.

"We don't have the same objective as we had in the Tour de France - like supporting one leader," Team BMC Racing sports director John Lelangue told Roadcycling.com and Roadcycling.mobi and added "This race is wide open for all the guys."

The BMC Racing Team brings a number of potential stage winners to the three-week race that begins with a team time trial this coming Saturday in Benidorm, Spain.

Greg Van Avermaet and Taylor Phinney will aim for success in the sprints while Mathias Frank, Ivan Santaromita and Johann Tschopp have been instructed to pursue general classification aspirations given the race's six mountain finishes.

Van Avermaet, winner of the Tour de Wallonie and runner-up at the Tour de Belgium, might also contend for the points jersey - a classification he won at the 2008 Vuelta. "We know he's pretty good on the tough finishes and getting in breakaways," Lelangue said.

According to himself, Phinney brings good form and increased confidence into his first Grand Tour appearance. Last week, he won the Eneco Tour prologue and scored five top 10 finishes on the way to fourth place overall.

"I'm looking forward to this race and I'm really excited to see what we can accomplish as a group," the reigning Under-23 world time trial champion said.

"We have the potential to have a good Vuelta and I hope to be able to contribute to that. I think this will be a good experience for me. Looking forward to the worlds, this is the best preparation that I can think of," Phinney added.